Insole and method of using the same



July 2, 1940.' A. DE vl'ro ET AL 2,205,716

A IH'SLE` AND METHD 0F USING. THE SAME Filed une 2, 193s Patented July2, 1940 PATENT OFFICE INSOLE AND METHOD 0F USING THE SAME Ain-ea ne vitoand Joseph W. Bama, chicago, Ill., assignors toJ. P. Smith Shoe Company,Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Illinois yApplication June ,2, 1939,Serial No. 276,976 Y 5 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in shoes and in the method ofmaking the same.

An object of the invention is to provide an insole for a shoe which. dueto the characteristics l of the insole, adds little to the stiffness ofthe outsole of the finished shoe. The soles of shoes embodying thepresent improvements are initially very flexible and comfortable. Inaccomplishing the result mentioned, the sole piece of the insole is.made of thin, flexible material such as shoeupper leather which is sothin as to be nonchannelable to provide conventional sewing lips. Wheresuch relatively thin sole pieces have been employed in the constructionof shoe insoles heretofore, lips have been provided by cementing one ormore strips to the sole piece, and we have found that in making suchlips of two strips of material and cementing them together, back toback,'a marginal ridge having a relatively abrupt l0 shoulder isfformedin the upper surface of the thin insole after the upper has been sewed.to the lip, andthe lip trimmed and leveled. Where relatively thickinsoley material of the type generally employed heretofore is used forinsoles, l5 such ridges are not formed, or at least'are not sopronounced as to render the shoe uncomfortable, since such heavy insolematerial is sufficiently thick to` permit portions of the trimmed lip tobe partially embedded in the lower surface of the n insole during theleveling operation. However. where the insole material is sufficientlythin to afford the desired flexibility of the finished shoe, the portionof the sewing lip which remains after seeming and trimming cannot be soembedded in u the insole, and hence, as stated, objectionable -ridgeshave been formed which render the shoes face of an insole embodyingthepresent invention, the insole being in inverted position;

50 Fig. 2 is an enlarged section taken online 2-2 of Fig. 1 but showingthe insolein reversed or normal position; y

Fig.'3 illustrates the relation of the insole sewing lip to the shoeupper and the welt `aitersewing the upper and welt to the lip:

Fig. 4 illustrates an outsole attached to the welt. .s

In the drawing the insole shown-in Fig. 1 is illustrated as comprising asection indicated generally by the numeral IIl which comprises a heelportion`II and a shank portion I2. This section I0 may be formed ofconventional insole leather, having suiilcient thickness or body toenableit to be cha-nneled at I3--I3 to form flanges H-M, each -pair 'ofwhich, when turned upwardly, as 4l0 .viewed in Fig. 1,.and cementedtogether, provide sewing lip sections I 'ii-I5. These sections arespaced inwardly a suitable distance from the margin of the shank I2. Theforward Yend. of

-the shank is skived or beveled and attached as l5 by cement to yacomplementarily skived end of a sole piece indicated generally by 'thenumeral I6. This sole piece I6 is of relatively thin material such asleather of the type generally used for shoe'uppers. This material is toothin to beA 20 channeled to provide integral sewing lips, Vsuch as areformed in the shank, and hence a lip section indicated generally by thenumeral II is. provided by attaching a pair of angularstrips to the solepieces as by cement. 25

The outer of these two strips comprises an upstandng flange I8 and ahorizontal flange I8a. The material of 'these strips may likewise bethin, flexiblevmaterial, such as shoe upper leatherA or even thinnermaterial. `The flange I8a. prefer- I0 ably is provided with therelatively closely spaced' transverse cuts I8b which facilitate theshaping or bending of the strip tothe shape of the sole piece I6. Theangular shape of the strips may be effected by known mechanism andsuitable presas sure sensitive adhesive applied to the strip dur-m ingthe shaping operation. 'Ihe inner strip comprises an upstanding flangeI9 anda horizontal flange I9a which, like flange Isa, are preferablyattached to the sole piece by the cement on thelo former. The ends ofthe flanges I8 and I9 overlap the lip sections I5-I5 a-nd are cementedthereto, thus providing a continuous composite sewing lip. The flangeI9a is provided with spaced notches I9b which facilitate bending the 45in the lip may, after a period of use, cause high l0 spotsin the uppersurface of the thin insole piece and may thereby make the finished vshoeuncomfortable. The flanges Iaa and I 9a arebeveled or skived, as shownin Fig. 2. The anges I8 and I9, as shown in Fig.,2, are attached to- Ily avoid. By shving the welt as described and ilgether at their outer Vormarginal edges lBc--Ic by the cement carried by the strips, but it willbe noted that the bases of the anges are spaced apart by reason of thespacing of lthe respective flanges I8a and I9a in attaching the same tothe sole piece IB. I'his arrangement provides con`- vergent portions Id,I9d, which are not attached together. 'I'he vspace provided. by thespacing of the bases which is indicated by the numeral 20 is ofimportance in that it accommodates portions I8d, I9d of the anges I8 andI9 upon leveling the seam after an upper has been sewed to the lip andsurplus portions of the lip and margin,l of the upper have been trimmedand leveled, thereby reducing the vertical height of the lip il. Thisarrangement avoids the formation of a. ridge in the upper surface of thesole piece I6 above the lip which we have found frequently occurs whereY no provision is made for a space corresponding to space 2B toaccommodate the i'langes i3 and i9 during the leveling operation.

In Fig. 3, they upper 2l and the welt 2E are shown sewed to the lipsection I, the stitches of the seam passing through the welt, the upper,and the lip sections Iii-i S, and through the connected portions I8o-i9cof lip section il. 'I'he stitches are indicated by the numeral 23. AftertheA stitching operation, the composite lip andA any surplus portion ofthe upper is then trimmed as closely to the line of stitches as ispracticable, as along the line o-a of Fig. 3. Thereafter, the seam isleveled by well-known means which forces the convergent portions vof lipI'i`into the space 20, and into contact with the sole piece to whichthey adhere. In other words, while the stitch- 1 whereby'the verticalheight of the lip, after` stitching and trimming, can be reduced withoutpressing a ridge in .the upper surface of the fthin insole piece I6. Y

In Fig. 3 it will' be seen that the upper and lower surfaces of welt 22taper inwardly slightly.' 'Ihis taper is produced by suitably skivingthe lower or esh side of the leather, where the 1at7 ter material isused.A Since the inner edge of the welt is turned downwardly institching thel same to the upper and to the lip and thereafter sewingthe welt to the outsole, the effective thickness of the welt at theinner edge thereof is increased. It willbe noted that the margin of theupper overlies the inner portion of the top surface of the welt and thatthe flange I8a overlies the inside of this portion of the upper. `Inmaking shoes of the type herein described, where the welt i was notskived, as described, the added thickness of the welt caused by foldingover the inner edge thereof, produced an' additional elevation at theedge of the insole piece I6 which it is desirable to tion provides, asshown in Fig. 4, a gentle incline at the margin oi' the insole whichcomfortably supports the contactingportion of the wearer's foot and thusincreases the comfort of the 'shoe over that afforded merely by theflexibility ofthe material of which the insole piece is formed..

By the present improvements, the sole of the nished shoe is extremelyflexible due to the use of the thin material of the sole piece IB and oithe an'ges I8 and I9, in lieu of material of sumcient thickness toenable the insole to be chan-L neled to provide the conventional sewinglips. V 'Ihe comfort of the shoe has been enhanced due to thelconstruction whereby .the former vrather abruptmarginal shoulder orelevation has been eliminated from the top surface of the insole and, inlieu thereof, a gently sloping portionhas been provided whichcomfortably supports the foot of the wearer. 1 Y

While we have shown and described an embodiment of our improvements, wedo not wish to be restricted specically thereto since various detailedsteps in the method and details of the construction may bealteredwithout departing from attaching to the forward ends thereof andto the` sole piece a pair of thin, flexible, angular' lip strips spacedapart at their bases, securing the strips together at the edges oppositesaid bases, sewing a shoe upper to the composite continuous lip thusformed, trimming surplus. material from the lip adjacent the seam, andthen'reducing the vertical height' oi said lip portion of the'sole pieceby pressing portions of the lip of the sole piece into the space betweenthe bases of the attached lip strips, and thereafter attaching anoutsole to the shoe. Y

2. An insolev for a shoe, comprising a heeland shank portion ofchannelable material, a sole pieceof thin, flexible non-channelablematerial secured to the end of the shank and a composite sewing. lip forsaid insole comprising channel-lip portions disposed along the lateraledges of the shank and a fabricated'lip on the'sole piece attached tothe adjacent ends of said channellips, said fabricated lip portioncomprising a pair of exible stripsof angular cross section having basessecured in spaced apart relation to said sole piede and outwardlydirected sewing iianges attached 'together at the edges opposite thebases, said space between said bases being sufficient toy accommodatetherein a portion of said sewing flanges after the same have beentrimmed following the sewing of an upper thereto. 3. An insole for ashoe comprising a Vheel and shank portion and a sole piece, the latterbeing of thin, ilexible, non-channelable material, and a sewing4 lip onsaid sole piece comprising a pair of thin, exible, angular strips havingskived bases attached to the sole piece in spaced apart relation andhaving outwardly directed flanges, said flanges having convergentportions adjacent said bases and` terminal edge portions secured'together whereby, after an upper has .been stitched to said marginalportion of the lip, said convergent portions thereof can be pressed intocontact with the sole piece in the space between said bases to reducethe height of the lip.

4. An insole for a shoe comprising a'sole piece provided with a sewinglip consisting of a pair of adhesive-coated strips, -said strips havingangularly disposed bases spaced apart and adhesively attached-to thesole piece and convergently disposed intermediate portions terminatingin mar- 7,

gins adhesively secured together, -said spacing of the bases beingsumcient to enable said oonvergent portions of the strips to be pressedinto adhesive contact with the sole piece for reducing the verticalheight of the lip.

5. The method of making a shoe which comprises providing an insolehaving a exiblevsole piece, attaching to the sole piece a pair of thinflexible lip strips spaced apart at their bases to form a composite lip,attaching an upper and a welt to the lip strips, leveling the seamto'press portions of said strips into thespace between the bases thereofand into contact withsuch sole piece to reduce the vertical height ofthe lip, and s thereafter attaching an outsole to said welt.

ALFRED DE VITO. JOSEPH W. BARNA.

